Birthing Athena

This extract is taken from Act I, Scene II

Balcony of Shankar's flat. Late at night. Plants and some wrought iron chairs are scattered around the balcony. Some empty beer bottles are lined up on the edge of the balcony. Ritu stands alone, wearing an oversized man's shirt. Soft music plays in the flat beyond. Shankar enters from the doorway, wearing a pair of old jeans, holding two bottles of beer.

SHANKAR:(walking up to Ritu and kissing her) Sorry, darling. That was Michael from the office...another crisis...Are you okay?

RITU: Yeah! Its just that everytime the phone rings...Before I left home, the phone kept ringing and getting cut off.

SHANKAR: Uh-oh...

RITU: Sounded like an overseas call. I got sick of it and left. Probably better. Why let the bastard think I'm sitting at the phone waiting.

SHANKAR: Definitely smarter. So, no news from David yet?

RITU: Nah! And I'm bloody well losing it. Just thirteen more months to go. I'lll be thiry and guess what...no book. Can't even meet a target set years ago.

SHANKAR: Come on! It'll happen. Thirteen months is pretty long time. He'll come through.

RITU: How come everyone else is so convinced that he'll come through and I'm not?

SHANKAR: Because it has to happen for you.

RITU: You and my mother! You haven't even read my stuff.

SHANKAR: Well, you could let me read it

RITU: No! I can't bear to let anyone read it.

SHANKAR: You're going to publish it, aren't you?......